 I want to talk to you about the personal nature of the Holy Spirit and how he can actually be grieved. The Holy Spirit is a person. By that I don't mean that he's a human being. I mean that there's a personal nature to him. The Holy Spirit is more than a force or a feeling. He's a friend. You can know the Holy Spirit as a friend, but you must learn to walk in obedience to, in surrender to the person of the Holy Spirit. Because as I'm going to show you, he can be grieved by the way we behave. John chapter 15 verse 26 says, But I will send you the advocate, the Spirit of Truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. Here the Scripture calls him a he, John 16, 13 and 14. But when he, the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak of his own initiative, but whatever he hears, he will speak and he will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify me and he will take of mine and will disclose it to you. The Bible refers to the Holy Spirit as a who and not a what. 1 John chapter 5 verses 6 through 8 says this, And Jesus Christ was revealed as God's Son, by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross, not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit who is Truth confirms it with his testimony. So we have these three witnesses, the Spirit, the water and the blood, all three agree. Now at this point, someone might be wondering, well, if the Holy Spirit is a person, then why do we call him the Holy Spirit? Well, that's his title. We also say, the Father and the Son, but the Father, we understand, is still a person and the Son, we understand, is still a person. So the Holy Spirit, that's his title, he's still a person. Furthermore, the scripture shows us that the Holy Spirit has a will. First Corinthians, chapter 12 verse 11 says, But all these work is that one and the self same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. I used to imagine that the Holy Spirit was just a mist floating in the air or something about the atmosphere, perhaps just a power or an influence. But the Holy Spirit is a person. He can be known and in fact, he desires a friendship with you. Friends of the Holy Spirit walk in boldness when they evangelize. They pray sincerely. They worship with depth. They read the scripture with understanding because the Holy Spirit is right there aiding them in their understanding of the scripture. They overcome sin. They love others. They demonstrate the fruits of the Holy Spirit. I don't know about you, but I want to be a friend of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit can speak. Acts chapter 8 verse 29 says, The Holy Spirit said to Philip, Go over and walk along beside the carriage. The Holy Spirit is referred to as the Lord. Second Corinthians chapter 3 verse 17 says, Now the Lord is that spirit and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. So he's a personal being, a third member of the Trinity. He is God and he can be known by you. God the Father is seated upon the throne. God the Son sits at his right hand and the Holy Spirit dwells in you. The Holy Spirit can be known on a personal basis while you're here upon the earth. He has a will. He has a mind. He is a person that can be known and he walks with you 24 seven day by day. He'll guide you. He'll protect you. He'll correct you. And think about this. What greater advantage is there in life than having the presence of the Holy Spirit abide with you? He sustains you and empowers you unto holy living. Now Ephesians 4 30 says something quite powerful. And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember the scripture says he has identified you as his own guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Let me read that again and I want you to really listen. I know I just read it but please we must learn to meditate on the word and meditation is simply repetition in thought not in the New Age sense which says empty your mind but in a biblical sense which says fill your mind with God's word Ephesians 4 30 and do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit. So he has feelings and grieve not the spirit some translations say by the way you live your actions can grieve him the way you behave can either please him or hurt him. Remember he has identified you as his own guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Now this is different again than the everywhereness of the Holy Spirit the omnipresence of the Holy Spirit. Yes we understand in a greater sense the Holy Spirit is everywhere at all times he is omnipresent but the way he dwells with the believer is not the way that he dwells with the unbeliever. The way he dwells with the believer is a special localized influence that he has over body soul and spirit. He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him the Bible says many have asked well how can the Holy Spirit who is holy dwell with sinful man how can he dwell with the believer say who's struggling with sin well that's the power of the atonement that's the power of justification that's what it means to be redeemed he's redeeming you it's because of the blood of Jesus it's because when God looks at the Son on the cross he sees your every mistake but when he looks at you he sees Christ's perfection that's what it means to stand in Christ that's what it means to receive the grace of God because we put our faith in the Lord Jesus now the Holy Spirit can abide with us that's how he can remain with us even though sometimes we make mistakes now that's not an encouragement to go on sinning but it is an encouragement so that you know that he's going to remain to help you get it right he doesn't stay and say just keep sinning live however you want no in fact when we sin we grieve him we grieve his heart it breaks his heart when we decline prayer it breaks his heart when we neglect the word it breaks his heart when we refuse to surrender certain areas of our lives it breaks his heart when we hold on to unforgiveness it breaks his heart when we participate in slander and gossip and division it breaks his heart when we do not demonstrate the fruits of the spirit oh but my friend remember this if he loves us enough to be grieved by our disobedience hear me now please if he loves us enough to be grieved by our disobedience then that means that he loves us enough to be pleased when we surrender here's something I've learned about the Holy Spirit he loves when you choose him over other things when you're praying for example and your phone begins to ring and you decline that call you put down that phone you say no right now I'm with you do you know that that pleases him I I've literally sensed it when I'm praying when I'm reading when I'm devoting time to the Lord and distractions tried to make their way in I've literally sensed his overflowing joy when I reject the distractions we break his heart when we go all throughout the day without even acknowledging his presence the Holy Spirit is not clingy he understands that we're busy he understands that we have things to do he understands that there are certain things that we have to do in order to exist in this world he gets that he's not clingy but to live your life without even acknowledging his presence that grieves his heart when we aren't grateful for what God has given to us when we lack gratitude toward the heavenly Father the Holy Spirit is grieved when we come against fellow brothers and sisters in Christ the Holy Spirit is grieved when we refuse to apologize to our spouse when we know we're wrong the Holy Spirit is grieved when we choose the entertaining over the spiritual the mundane over the heavenly when we choose the here and the now above the then and the there the heavenly realm we grieve the Holy Spirit when we keep the perspective of just earthly mentalities instead of seeing things through heaven's eyes we grieve the Holy Spirit when we obey the word we do as God says we bring joy to his heart if he loves you enough to be grieved by your disobedience then he loves you enough to be pleased by your obedience i don't know about you but i don't want to grieve the precious Holy Spirit i want to pray with you right now and i want to guide you in a prayer of repentance and i want to pray over you that you would know what it is to share in friendship with the Holy Spirit so father i thank you that you are gracious and merciful i thank you that you are kind and loving and i pray right now lord for that one receiving this and i ask you to begin to draw to draw them to higher places help them to live in a way that pleases you i want you to say this say Holy Spirit say it out loud say Holy Spirit i want you say it say i want you to feel at home does he feel at home in you or do you live in such a way that it grieves his heart now ask God's forgiveness he's merciful he's kind i'm telling you he'll forgive you ask him and now turn from that and make commitment in your heart today to not grieve the precious Holy Spirit father help them do it be their constant reminder give them grace and power to walk as you've called them to walk Holy Spirit let your power flow wow we give you the honor and the praise and the church said amen if you've been watching us maybe for a few weeks maybe you just discovered this ministry and the ministry is helping you the prayer the word events the content whatever aspect of the ministry is blessing you i want to ask you something will you today help the ministry on its mission look the gospel is free but the means to deliver the gospel on a mass scale that's what takes resources to do media on a mass scale to do events all around the world as we do them that takes resources and we don't charge for the videos we don't charge registration fees for our event freely we receive so freely we give we do it the biblical way which is to have faith in God to touch the hearts of his people to give free will offerings to help the work so i'm asking you right now to give a single donation or to become a monthly ministry supporter to give a single donation just go to davidhernandezministries.com slash donate to become a monthly ministry supporter go to davidhernandezministries.com slash partner i appreciate your support thank you for that and just know that everything you give is helping us to continue to spread the gospel of jesus christ all around the world in the power of the holy spirit and until next time remember nothing is impossible with god